How to live a holistic lifestyle
Holistic living is a lifestyle that nourishes the mind, body, and soul. Our existence is multidimensional and all the dimensions are interrelated. According to research, there are 5 main aspects of our health – if any of these is not “well”, our overall health is affected.
What are the 5 dimensions of health & wellness?
No matter where you are in your life, wellness is an ongoing, dynamic process, rather than a constant state. It is fluid and changing as we try to balance different aspects of our lives. These 5 aspects (or dimensions) of health that constitute a holistic view of a person are: physical, emotional, mental, spiritual and social.
Let’s take a closer look at each of these 5 dimensions
Physical dimension of health and wellness is about recognizing the need for looking after your boody: having physical activity, wating healthy foods, and getting enoughsleep.
Emotional dimension of health refers to awareness, acceptance and ability to cope with and express our feelings.
Mental dimension is basically a cognitive aspect of the person. Ability to think, solve problems, find ways to expand knowledge and skills.
Spiritul health relates to expanding a sense of purpose and meaning in life.
Social dimension is about a sense of connection, belonging, and a support system.
We need to pay attention to all dimensions of our wellness to be able to heal, grow and flourish in life. If one of the dimensions is neglected, it impacts all the others.
Holistic lifestyle
Living holistically means that you approach your health and wellness by viewing yourself as a whole. Holistic lifestyle integrates all these 5 dimensions of wellness into our everyday lives, because we need to nourish every part of ourselves in order to be well as a whole.
That doesn’t necessarily mean that we have to follow strict rules that were developed by others. In fact. If we did that, sooner or later we would burn out. Instead, when we live holistically, we observe ourselves and through this observation we create a lifestyle that nourishes every aspect of our unique existence.
In practice, this may look like mixing and matching different self-care practices so that we make sure to include all 5 dimensions. Below are some ideas:
Physical: getting enough sleep, movement (yoga, running, walking, dancing), nutrition, skin-care, getting baths or massages.
Mental: reading, watching TV, participating in workshops, upskilling, learning new skills, trying out things you haven’t done before.
Emotional: attending therapy, journalling, hugging yourself, connecting to your Inner Child, giving yourself permission to cry when needed and express your emotions in a healthy way.
Spiritual: praying, meditating, reading inspirational material related to your values and purpose, doing something that brings you joy.
Social: making time to reach out to and connect with your friends/family members, and being able to recognize the need for a break from socializing.
Living a holistic lifestyle requires patience to develop new habits and routines, and flexibility to allow ourselves to adjust and make mistakes. It’s a process, not a goal and it doesn’t have to be perfect. It just needs to be perfect for you.